Whether you're at a fest in the city or the mountains, remember to bring extra baby wipes, test your party favors, avoid the wook flu and leave no trace.
Here are the best music festivals to check out this summer:
Indulge in the best of local jazz at City Park Jazz's summer concert series.
Aaron Thackeray
City Park Jazz
Every Sunday, 6 to 8 p.m., June 2 through August 4
City Park
Since 1986, City Park Jazz has hosted ten free concerts each summer — a gift of free live music that's become a beloved annual tradition. Bring your lawn chairs, picnics and friends and family, and gather around the City Park pavilion to listen to jazz, blues, salsa and more from some of the city's best musicians. This year's lineup includes Hazel Miller & the Collective, JoFoKe & Same Cloth, Delta Sonics Blues Revue and more; see the entire lineup here.
Gulch Fest Music & Arts Gathering
July 11-14
Virginia Dale
This is Gulch Fest's sixth annual gathering, but the first in its new location in Virginia Dale. The intimate, four-night festival began as a one-night party in a horse corral and has only grown since, with more dates, musicians and art-makers. This year's lineup includes Los Toms, Shadow Work, the Bramblers, Dreamspace Database and more psychedelic-rock bands and DJs. Find tickets and more information here.
Winter Park Jazz Festival
July 20-21
Winter Park
The Winter Park Jazz Festival celebrated its fortieth anniversary last summer, and the future looks bright with this year's lineup. Enjoy offerings from food trucks and craft brewers while listening to live music from the likes of Anthony Hamilton, Stokley, Average White Band, Eric Darius and Rebecca Jade, and Nathan Mitchell on Saturday, July 20, before closing out the weekend on Sunday with Boney James, Lalah Hathaway, Pieces of a Dream, Nicholas Cole and more. Find tickets and more information here.
Global Dance Festival
July 26-27
Stockyards Event Center, 5004 National Western Drive
Global Dance Festival is Denver's largest EDM festival, and this year it's moved from Empower Field to the Stockyards Event Center. Filled with immersive-art installations and even welded fire sculptures, the annual affair brings together Mile High ravers to see a stable of electronic artists. This year's lineup includes the Chainsmokers, Duke Dumont, G Jones, Champagne Drip, Boogie T B2B Jantsen, Crankdat and many more. Find your tickets via AXS.
Underground Music Showcase
July 26-28
South Broadway
Discover your favorite new local band at the Underground Music Showcase, which has been uplifting the Mile High music scene since 2001. Led by Two Parts and the nonprofit Youth on Record, UMS takes over South Broadway with outdoor stages and concerts in venues, and is committed to a diverse roster of multiple genres from both local and national acts. The festival even has an official app so that you can map out your festival experience, making it easily navigable. This year's lineup is as stacked as ever; find more information and tickets here.
Rhythms on the Rio
August 2-4
Del Norte
Presented by the South Fork Music Association, a nonprofit that promotes children's music education, Rhythms on the Rio is a family-friendly event that combines outdoor rec with quality live music and is entirely volunteer-run. This year's lineup isn't completely set, but it's already looking sweet, with the California Honeydrops, Daniel Donato's Cosmic Country, ALO, the Lil' Smokies, Shadowgrass, Diggin' Dirt, the Fretliners, Armchair Boogie, Cousin Curtiss and more to come. Get your tickets and camping passes here.
Beanstalk Music & Mountains Festival
August 8-10
Bond, Colorado
Founded by Colorado jam band Magic Beans eleven years ago, the Beanstalk Music Festival has more than just music. Since it's nestled alongside the Colorado River in the Vail Valley, you can go rafting, bike along a wide selection of trails, or hike and then soak in hot springs. But music is still the primary draw, with Magic Beans playing each night. This year's lineup also includes genre-hopping Doom Flamingo, Denver jam band Squeaky Feet, Dragondeer and more. Tickets start at $80.
Rocky Mountain Folks Festival
August 9-11
Lyons
Jackson Browne once said of RMFF: "This is what I had in mind when I was about fifteen or sixteen and I thought it would be really great to travel around and play festivals. This was the festival I was thinking of." For years, the Rocky Mountain Folks Festival has welcomed an array of musicians to play for fans at the Planet Bluegrass Ranch in Lyons; this year includes sets from the Wood Brothers, John Vincent III, Jamestown Revival, the Harlem Gospel Travelers and many more. Ticket prices are tiered; find more information here.
Ghost Canyon Fest
August 23-25
Various venues on South Broadway
Ghost Canyon Fest made its debut last year and will be back on South Broadway in August with more noise, metal and rock music. On August 23, the show will be at the Skylark Lounge; the next night will be hosted by Mutiny Information Cafe; and the fest will close out at the hi-dive on August 25. Discover the lineup and get early-bird weekend passes on the festival's website.
Shine Music Festival
August 24
ReelWorks, 1399 35th Street
Shine Music Festival is returning to ReelWorks for its fourth year. This festival is known for going above and beyond ADA requirements, making it the most accessible fest in Denver. As founder Shawn Satterfield told us last year, “We are a music festival that removes barriers to allow everyone the opportunity to experience the day on their own terms.” This year's fest will be headlined by Karl Denson's Tiny Universe; the lineup will include Cory Simmons, School of Rock and more, with more names to be announced. Find tickets here.
Caveman Music Festival
August 30-September 1
Monument Lake Resort, Weston
This festival could be the perfect way to send off your summer, with outdoor rec options ranging from fishing to hiking to kayaking, all while you listen to live music from twenty bands and musicians. With two stages and a capacity of 5,000, Caveman offers a more intimate experience than some of the summer's big festivals, but the lineup is still impressive, with more than twenty acts. This year's roster includes Kurt Vile and the Violators, Red Clay Strays, the Wallflowers, Band of Heathens and more. Find ticket prices here.
Billy Strings Renewal
September 27-28
Buena Vista
Billy Strings is bringing his music festival back to the Meadows in Buena Vista, where you'll listen to the bluegrass master himself alongside other acts while surrounded by the San Juan Mountains. Extracurriculars abound, with rafting, yoga, river floats, biking and whatever suits your heart in the outdoors. Tickets are available now.
